In 1972 24 trade unionists were arrested in the wake of the first ever national building workers’ strike. Six were jailed, in circumstances which union activists have long alleged were the result of political pressure from the then Tory government. Forty years on Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson, who was imprisoned for two years for his involvement, explains how fresh evidence has led to a new campaign to overturn their convictions.

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Referendums on whether or not to have directly elected mayors will take place in 10 English cities this week. Underlying the political gamesmanship, the elected mayors issue reveals a delusional approach to the north south divide.

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When Danny Alexander announced plans to link the public sector retirement age to the state pension age in order to increase it to 66, he repeated a common myth: “We are all living longer, that means more years spent in work as well as in retirement.” The same myth was used to justify Tory proposals […]

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It’s been over a week since the Tory conference left town. For several days, inside the almost militarised city centre, shadow ministers and carefully briefed mouths gushed ‘honesty’. Manchester didn’t seem to pay that much attention. Manufactured ovations to parts of Cameron’s speech and interviewees practically reading off their hands to emphasise how great Dave is on poverty and ‘our boys’ in Afghanistan weren’t fooling anyone.

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Epsom in Surrey, an affluent commuter town on the chalk downs of Surrey that Location, Location, Location named the ‘Best place to Live in the UK’ in 2005. It’s just the kind of place you might expect to find a man like Chris Grayling, the Shadow Home Secretary. Grayling is an Oxbridge graduate, and before […]

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